DANIEL  HAWKINS  OVERTON 


Daniel  Hawkins  Overton 

Mattituck 


PUBLISHED  BY  HIS  CABINET 
AS  A  MEMORIAL 


FOREWORD 

As  members  of  the  Cabinet  of  Rev.  Daniel 
H.  Overton  we  were  fortunate  in  becoming 
intimately  acquainted  with  him  and  grew  to 
love  and  respect  him  as  friend  and  pastor.  It 
is  therefore  a  great  pleasure  to  dedicate  this 
book  in  loving  memory  of  one  who  helped  us 
to  gain  a  clearer  vision  of  the  Better  Life  and 
taught  us  the  true  meaning  of  the  words, 
Friend  and   Brother. 

ELLIS  G.  REEVE, 
HARRY  I.  ALDRICH, 
ELWOOD  S.  REEVE, 
J.  TROWBRIDGE  KIRKUP, 
MALCOLM  M.  REEVE. 


HIS  CREED 

I  believe  in  God,  the  Supreme  Power  of 
nature,  perpetually  creating,  eternally  per- 
fecting all  things  that  are. 

I  believe  in  God,  a  presence  in  human  his- 
tory, manifesting  Himself  in  all  history,  but 
fully  manifest  only  in  Jesus  of  Nazareth  in 
Galilee,  w^ho  was  born  into  the  humblest  cir- 
cumstances, a  Jew  of  the  lower  class,  in  the 
most  despised  city  of  all  Israel,  in  a  day  of 
tyranny  and  revolt ;  worked  many  years  as  a 
carpenter ;  was  baptized  by  John,  a  prophet  of 
the  Kingdom ;  became  conscious  of  power ; 
was  tempted  in  all  things  like  as  we  are,  to 
misuse  His  gifts,  but  sinned  not;  suffered  in 
all  things  the  suffering  of  the  innocent,  set 
upon  by  great  powers  of  evil  which  He  had 
sought  to  overthrow ;  was  crucified  for  insti- 
gating a  revolution,  dead — utterly  dead,  no 
least  possibility  of  error — and  buried.  With 
Him  died  utterly  the  kindling  flame  of  His 
spirit;  and  stayed  dead  three  days.  On  the 
third  day — a  circumstance  I  do  not  pretend  to 
understand  —  He  was  alive  again,  lighting 
again  with  an  abiding  hope  the  burdened 
hearts  of  His  disciples;  and  has  remained  alive 


6  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

through    all    the   centuries,    drawing   new    fol- 
lowers to  His  side. 

I  believe  in  God,  an  Actuality  of  present 
experience,  called  the  Holy  Spirit,  working 
ever  in  our  minds  and  hearts  His  holy  will. 
This  inner  experience  I  count  fully  sufficient 
in  itself  unto  faith,  however  dependent  it  may 
be  historically  on  outward  events. 

I  believe  that  these  three,  God,  the  Supreme 
power  of  nature,  God,  a  Presence  in  human 
history,  and  God,  an  Actuality  of  present  ex- 
perience, are  not  three  but  One ;  that  the 
power  that  controls  the  ponderous  heavenly 
bodies  is  the  same  loving  Father  that  revealed 
himself  in  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  the  eternal 
Christ ;  and  that  this  God  and  Father  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  is  in  turn  the  same  Influence  that 
broods  over  our  hearts  to  quicken  them  to  life. 

I  believe  in  the  kingdom  of  God,  the  perfect 
society  w^hich  God  perpetually  creates  by  the 
fellowship  of  them  that  believe ;  I  believe  in 
the  forgiveness  of  sins — God  wanting  off  our 
past  failures  in  a  kind  of  perpetual  bankruptcy 
proceeding,  and  granting  us  new^  credit  to  be- 
gin anew.  I  believe  that  no  value,  once 
created  by  the  Father,  Son,  and  Spirit,  is  ever 
lost. 

DANIEL  H.  OVERTON. 


POEM 

Just  to  accept  Him, 

What !  not  enough 
For  the  horning  Christian ! 

Why  that's  of  the  stuff 
Of  heroes  and  martyrs. 

Just  to  accept  Him, 
Too  slight  a  thing? 

While  the  cross  still  towers 
And  the  earth-bound  fling 
Their  jeers  at  His  anguish. 

Just  to  accept  Him 

A  personal  Saviour, 
Does  that,  then,  contain 

No  pledge  of  behavior — 
No  abjuring  of  sin? 

No  joining  of  battle? 

What !  not  a  word 
In  accepting  Christ,  of 

**Not  peace  but  a  sword" 
In  our  day  of  strife? 

—DANIEL  H.  OVERTON. 


HIS  TASK 

(By  Leila  Atwood  Foust) 

To  those  who  were  privileged  to  be  inti- 
mately associated  with  Daniel  Overton,  there 
came  a  consciousness  of  the  fact  that  his  min- 
istry was  to  be  unique ;  the  result  of  positive 
convictions,  based  upon  the  character  and  life 
of  Jesus,  the  Christ,  and  the  great  sufifering  of 
the  world  of  to-day.  As  he  studied  carefully 
and  prayerfully  the  word  of  God,  as  inter- 
preted by  the  fathers  of  yesterday,  and  the 
students  and  scientists  of  to-day,  so  he  studied 
men  of  the  past  and  the  men  of  his  own  day ; 
that  he  might  be  fully  equipped  to  meet  their 
need.  In  order  to  do  this  accurately  he  lived 
and  worked  with  and  taught  all  classes  of 
men;  like  his  Master,  the  men  of  limitations, 
circumscribed  by  customs,  laws  and  world-old 
traditions,  appealed  to  him  most.  During  his 
vacation  time,  which  might  have  been  spent 
in  recreation  or  in  travel  and  in  acquiring  that 
culture  that  accrues  from  intimate  association 
with  professors,  scholars  and  peoples  of 
wealth  and  refinement,  he  chose  rather  to 
work  "on  the  road"  with  pick,  shovel  and 
lunch-box,  that  he  might  get  close  to  their 
need   and    into    the    hearts    of    men    he    called 


10  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

brother;  the  men  the  world  calls  the  foreigner, 
the  laboring  man,  the  man  to  be  kept  under. 
One  day,  while  working  under  a  summer  sun, 
toil-stained  and  weary,  a  foreigner,  in  his 
l)r()ken  English,  said,  "Mr.  Danny,  you  Jesus 
man,  and  you  work  with  me!"  *'Yes,  yes," 
came  the  answer,  with  that  radiant  smile  and 
brotherly  hand-grasp,  ''Why  not,  Peter?"  Ah! 
like  his  Christ,  the  people  heard  him  gladly 
and  marveled  as  he  ministered  unto  them. 

While  Seminary  days  were  crowded  with 
interesting  studies  and  fellowships,  he  di- 
vided his  valuable  time,  and  taught  in  a  pri- 
vate school,  the  sons  of  the  millionaire,  the 
rich  and  the  influential  of  the  great  city,  in 
order  that  he  might  also  study  their  viewpoint 
and  their  place  in  the  great  struggle  for  free- 
dom and  democracy.  How  well  he  taught  is 
seen  in  this  incident,  after  a  game  of  football 
on  the  campus,  one  day.  A  lad,  with  a  gener- 
ation of  aristocrats  behind  him,  and  a  fortune 
for  his  future,  came  running  to  blaster  Over- 
ton, shouting,  '*Oh  !  I  see  what  you  mean,  the 
only  way  to  play  is  to  play  fair."  No  wonder 
Master  Overton  dreamed  of  the  day  when  this 
old  world  shall  swing  back  into  the  Father- 
hood of  God,  when  millionaires'  sons  have 
learned  to  play  fair. 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  11 

The  evenings  of  these  same  strenuous  days 
were  given  to  the  men  and  boys  of  the  East 
Side  in  the  Settlement;  comprising  all  na- 
tionalities, and  the  despised  Jew.  They 
crowded  into  the  gym  and  classrooms  where 
he  taught  them  brotherhood,  comradeship,  and 
a  loyal  Americanism.  Coming  into  the  gym- 
nasium a  few  moments  late,  one  evening,  he 
heard  a  little  Italian  chap  shout,  "Here  he 
comes.  Play  like  we  gotta  beat,  like  he  says, 
we  gotta  win."  And  they  are  playing  yet,  and 
their  teacher  believed  God  and  trusted  they 
would  win. 

Frequenth ,  in  returning  to  his  home  late  in 
the  evening,  he  w^ould  stop  to  listen  to  some 
soap-box  orator,  on  the  street  corner,  and  in 
all  sympathy,  hear  their  cry  for  justice.  On 
one  such  occasion,  he  noticed  the  young 
woman  speaking  had  a  folded  newspaper  in 
her  hand,  to  which  she  often  referred.  The 
paper,  a  New  York  weekly,  w^as  printed  in  her 
own  native  tongue.  Speaking  to  her  after  her 
address  had  been  given  to  that  conglomerate 
crowd,  he  asked  to  see  the  paper  from  which 
she  had  received  her  facts.  As  he  read,  he 
found  that  Americanism  and  patriotism  had 
been  so  misrepresented,  that  were  we  in  their 
place,  we  would  take  the  same  stand  for  libert} 


12  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

and  justice.  Can  you  not  comprehend  why 
he  pleaded  for  the  justice  that  is  so  long  de- 
layed ;  for  the  sympathy  and  the  brotherhood 
that  is  the  God-given  right  for  all  ? 

To  Daniel  Overton,  the  ministry  was  the 
Cross,  the  sacrifice,  the  criticisms,  the  pov- 
erty, and  the  glory  of  the  ''Well  done"  of  the 
Father,  when  his  task  was  done.  But  think 
not  of  him  as  sad  or  lonely  or  disheartened  ; 
to  him,  the  Kingdom  was  coming;  that  light 
which  lighteneth  every  man,  was  to  illuminate 
the  wide,  wide  world  ;  and  for  him  was  the  joy 
of  holding  that  light  high,  while  men  looked 
to  his  flaming  torch  and  lived.  He  is  not  dead. 
He  is  just  away.  And  from  his  uplifted  light, 
the  radiant  gleam  still  falls  on  our  way,  and 
we  can  almost  hear  him  saying,  in  the  words 
of   one    he    loved. 

There  is  a  light  where'er  I  go. 
There  is  a  Splendor  where  I  wait. 
Though  all  around  be  desolate, 

Warm  on  ni}'  eyes  I  feel  the  glow. 

The  fight  is  long,  the  triumph  slow. 

Yet  shall  my  soul  stand  strong  and  straight; 

There  is  a  light  where'er  I  go, 
There  is  a  Splendor  where  I  wait. 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  13 

My  enemy  is  strong,  I  know; 

His  arts  are  sly,  his  guns  are  great. 

I    do   not  fear   him   or   his   hate. 
In  fog,  in  darkness,  gropes  my  foe. 
There  is  a  light  where'er  I  go. 


DANIEL   HAWKINS    OVERTON 

(By  John  G.   Hehr) 

On  the  twenty-eighth  of  February  nineteen 
hundred  and  twenty-one  in  the  attractive  vil- 
lage of  Mattituck,  on  Peconic  Bay,  N.  Y.,  a 
young  man  died,  wdio  after  a  thorough  prepa- 
ration for  a  long  and  useful  life  in  the  ministry 
had  just  settled  down  with  his  young  wife  for 
a  strenuous  work  in  the  interest  of  Christ's 
kingdom.  His  plans  w^ere  laid  out,  the  work 
begun,  and  the  first  fruits  of  his  enthusiastic 
and  faithful  efforts  had  been  already  recog- 
nized by  a  grateful  congregation,  when  sud- 
denly the  order  of  his  Master  reached  him  like 
an  unexpected  summons  of  a  higher  tribunal 
to  leave  his  flock,  his  wife,  his  child,  all  his 
relatives,  his  study,  his  field  of  labor,  his  plans 
for  the  future,  his  hopes  for  success  and  all 
that  was  precious  to  his  heart  and  mind  in  this 
lower  plane  of  life  and  to  join  his  dear  father 
and  mother  who  had  preceded  him  into  the 
upper   realm   of   our   future   life   and   activity. 

This  young  man  was  none  other  than  the 
Rev.  Daniel  Hawkins  Overton,  the  beloved 
pastor  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Matti- 
tuck, N.  Y.     It  is  my  object  in  this  chapter  to 

15 


16  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

just  give  a  short  sketch  of  his  life  during  his 
school  years  and  his  preparation  for  the  high 
calling  as  a  minister  of  the  gospel. 

Rev.  Daniel  H.  Overton  was  born  at  South- 
old,  N.  Y.,  on  September  fifth,  eighteen  hun- 
dred and  ninety-six,  at  the  home  of  his  grand- 
parents, Jonathan  B.  Terry  and  his  wife, 
Martha  Terry.  The  father  of  young  Daniel 
was  a  distinguished  member  of  the  Brooklyn 
Presbytery  and  at  the  time  of  the  birth  of 
Daniel,  pastor  t)f  the  Greene  Avenue  Presby- 
terian Church  of  Brooklyn.  His  mother, 
Carrie  Overton,  daughter  of  Jonathan  B. 
Terry,  a  banker  of  Southold,  was  a  woman  of 
fine  intellect,  culture  and  pleasant  graceful 
manners.  It  is  the  mother  in  particular  that 
imparted  to  her  son  that  winning  smile  and 
his  dignified  bearing,  while  no  doubt  he  in- 
herited from-  his  father  his  cordiality,  his 
frankness,  his  democratic  spirit,  his  strong 
physique,  his  studiousness  and  his  love  for 
athletics. 

'  He  was  named  at  his  christening  after  his 
father  and  the  old  testament  prophet,  Daniel, 
with  the  ardent  wish  of  his  parents  that  he 
might  follow  in  his  father's  footsteps  in  be- 
coming a  minister  of  the  gospel  and  be  en- 
dowed with  the  spirit  of  the  great  prophet  of 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  17 

Israel.  His  name  was  therefore  a  constant 
admonishment  to  him  to  strive  for  this  great 
object  in  hfe  which  his  parents  had  designed 
for  him. 

The  spring  of  his  life  was  full  of  sunshine. 
Only  once  a  dark  and  threatening  cloud  of  an 
infantile  sickness  spread  its  heavy  shadow 
over  him  which  kept  him  for  over  a  half 
year  from  school.  It  was  very  fortunate  for 
him  to  have  his  grandparents  living  in  South- 
old,  which  made  it  possible  to  enjoy  during 
the  summer  months  the  open  nature  which 
contributed  a  great  deal  towards  his  physical 
development.  During  the  winter  season  he 
stayed  with  his  parents  in  Brooklyn  and  at- 
tended school.  In  the  year  nineteen  hundred 
and  nine  he  graduated  from  Public  School  No. 
2(i,  and  in  nineteen  hundred  and  thirteen,  from 
the  high  school  in  Islip,  N.  Y.,  where  his 
parents  had  moved  to  since.  After  leaving  the 
high  school  he  entered  Lafayette  College  at 
Easton,  Pa.,  the  college  which  his  father  at- 
tended in  his  days.  After  a  four  years'  course 
he  graduated  with  honors  and  entered  the 
Union  Theological  Seminary  of  New  York  in 
nineteen  hundred  and  seventeen  to  study  for 
the  ministry.  Though  his  choice  of  this  school 
was  influenced  by  his  father,  who  himself  was 


18  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

a  graduate  of  it,  he  could  hardly  have  entered 
any  other  school  that  would  have  suited  him 
better.  In  reference  to  this  Mrs.  Minnie  Terry- 
Smith  of  Peconic,  N.  Y.,  an  aunt  of  his,  re- 
marks :  ''Daniel,  while  studying  at  Lafayette 
College  was  not  altogether  clear  to  himself  as 
to  his  future  object  in  life,  nor  did  the  environ- 
ment greatly  inspire  him  there,  but  when  he 
came  to  the  Union  Theological  Seminary  he 
found,  not  only  the  element  he  liked,  but  he 
found   himself." 

In  nineteen  hundred  and  twenty  he  grad- 
uated from  the  Seminary  and  came  before  the 
Presbytery  of  Brooklyn-Nassau  to  be  exam- 
ined for  license  to  preach  the  gospel.  The  ex- 
amination took  place  and  revealed  that  the 
young  candidate  was  not  only  a  scholar  but 
also  a  thinker.  His  written  confession  as  to 
his  belief  was  a  masterpiece  and  indicated 
clearly  that  he  was  not  going  to  preach  church 
doctrine,  no  matter  whether  he  was  in  full 
accord  with  it  or  not,  but  that  he  would  preach 
the  truth,  as  he  understood  it,  and  that  he  would 
not  stoop  down  to  preach  or  teach  anything  of 
which  he  was  not  personally  convinced.  He 
passed  his  examination  gloriously  and  received 
his  license  and  soon  after,  the  ordination  for 
the  ministry.     All  this  took  place  in  the  pres- 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  19 

ence  of  his  happy  father,  who  received  from 
the  Presbytery  the  most  enthusiastic  congratu- 
lations on  behalf  of  a  son  that  gave  so  much 
reasonable  hope  for  success  and  future  great- 
ness. Alas !  how  different  did  matters  turn 
out  from  what  they  were  expected  to  be. 

Daniel's  election  as  pastor  of  the  Presby- 
terian Church  at  Mattituck,  N.  Y.,  was  a  tri- 
umph for  him.  Due  to  the  resignation  of  Dr. 
Craven,  this  church  was  without  a  minister 
and  it  resolved  to  have  a  young  man  elected 
into  Dr.  Craven's  place.  The  church  gave  our 
Daniel  the  first  chance  to  preach  a  trial  ser- 
mon. After  having  delivered  two  sermons, 
one  in  the  morning  and  one  in  the  evening  ser- 
vice, the  congregation  was  so  well  pleased  with 
his  preaching  that  it  resolved  not  to  invite 
any  further  candidates,  but  elect  young  Over- 
ton. "We  want  the  young  man  and  not  a 
young  man/'  shouted  the  young  people.  The 
election  took  place  and  Daniel  received  a 
unanimous  vote  as  pastor  of  the  large  and  in- 
fluential church  at  Mattituck,  N.  Y.  How  he 
made  good  in  this,  his  first  parish,  and  how  his 
popularity  grew  among  his  people  w411  be  de- 
scribed in  one  of  the  other  chapters  of  this 
booklet. 

Daniel  came  to  Mattituck  as  a  married  man. 


20  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

He  gave  no  hope  to  young  ladies  to  become  the 
first  lady  of  the  church,  nor  to  any  mother  of 
attractive  daughters,  to  be  the  future  mother- 
in-law  of  the  new  pastor.  The  love  for  the 
young  pastor  was  therefore  general  and  un- 
biased. Yes,  Daniel  was  married  when  he 
came  to  Mattituck  and  this  w^as  well  for  him 
and  for  the  congregation.  In  choosing  his 
life's  partner  Daniel  evidently  believed  in 
home  products.  As  a  candidate  for  the  min- 
istry, preaching  in  various  churches,  he  came 
in  touch  with  many  fair  young  w^omen  of  prom- 
inent families,  yet  there  was  none  among  them 
that  compared  with  that  beautiful  flower  that 
grew  up  in  the  house  of  a  neighbor  across  the 
street  from  his  father's  house  in  Islip.  It  was 
Marian,  the  daughter  of  the  Rev.  John  J. 
Foust,  and  his  wife,  Leila,  both  noted  preach- 
ers in  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  that 
drew  his  attention,  which  soon  changed  into 
admiration  and  love  and  finally  resulted  in  an 
exceedingly  happy  marriage  and  an  ideal  fam- 
ily life. 

Yet  there  is  nothing  lasting  in  this  world 
of  contrasts  and  changes.  The  higher  the 
mountain,  the  deeper  the  valley ;  the  greater 
our   happiness   the   more   intense   our   sorrow 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  21 

But  we  know  too  that  while  after  sunshine 
storms  will  come,  yet  sunshine  bright  and  clear 
will  follow  after  storms. 

A  few  of  the  strong  characteristics  in  Dan- 
iel's life,  which  were  at  the  bottom  of  his 
exceptional  success  and  popularity,  should  not 
be  omitted  in  this  short  sketch.  For  if  these 
remarks  have  any  purpose  at  all  it  is  not  to 
glorify  this  young  preacher,  but  to  show  by 
his  example  to  others,  especially  to  young  men 
of  this,  our.  pleasure-craving  generation,  what 
there  is  needed  to  attain  unto  true  success  in 
life. 

The  first  great  virtue  in  his  character  was 
filial  consideration.  Daniel  knew  that  his 
father  was  not  a  rich  man  and  that  in  giving 
him  a  college  education  he  made  a  sacrifice 
in  his  behalf.  He  felt  that  this  should  be  an 
obligation  to  him  to  use  his  time  and  oppor- 
tunity for  conscientious  study  and  lose  no 
time  and  waste  no  money  in  useless  pastime 
and  extravagance.  On  the  contrary,  in  order 
to  help  his  father  to  carry  the  burden  of  his 
education,  he  worked  hard  to  earn  for  himself 
a  scholarship,  which,  having  been  awarded  to 
him,  helped  to  pay  his  way  through  the 
Seminary.  Such  traits  enoble  a  young  man 
and  endear   him   to   God   and   man.     Another 


22  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

feature  in  his  character  was  his  jo}'  in  doing" 
good  to  others  and  in  particular  to  his  country. 
This  feature  prompted  him  during  his  stay  in 
Easton,  Pa.,  inasmuch  as  he  could  not  enlist 
as  a  soldier,  to  devote  each  days  three  hours  in 
ammunition-making  and  thereby  serving  his 
country  in  a  way  possible  for  him.  In  the  same 
benevolent  spirit  he  undertook  the  much-needed 
settlement  w^ork  in  New  York  City.  His  demo- 
cratic spirit  and  a  keen  sense  t)f  justice  and 
right  was  another  trait  in  his  character.  All  men 
were  alike  to  him.  His  heart  went  out  in  ten- 
der sympathy  towards  every  man,  woman 
and  child  in  need  and  his  hands  stretched  forth 
to  uplift  those  that  were  downtrodden  and 
outraged  by  othei^,  or  suffering  from  their  own 
errors  and  follies  in  life,  while  his  wrath  came 
down  like  thunderbolts  upon  those  that 
wronged  their  fellowmen  by  exploitation  of 
their  labor  and  by  a  thousand  other  ways  in 
which  unscrupulous  men  are  putting  them- 
selves into  possession  of  that  for  which  others 
have  toiled  and  labored.  He  regarded  all  labor 
as  honorable  and  despised  and  hated  the  drones 
of  human  society.  In  this  spirit  you  would 
hnd  him  on  a  Sunday  in  the  pulpit  of  a  fashion- 
able church  in  Greenwich,  N.  Y.,  or  in  Hrent- 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  23 

wood,  N.  Y.,  and  on  week  days  standing  shoul- 
der to  shoulder  with  other  workingmen  mak- 
ing streets  in  Islip. 

Daniel  H.  Overton  was  a  man  good  at  heart 
and  as  all  such  men  are  drawing  others  unto 
themselves,  like  a  magnet  will  draw  iron,  he 
naturally  became  the  center  of  attraction 
wherever  he  came  in  touch  with  other  people. 
This  is  in  particular  true  with  regard  to  his 
position  as  pastor  among  his  people  at  Matti- 
tuck.  Rev.  Edwin  Arthur  Burtt,  assistant  pas- 
tor of  the  St.  Paul's  Methodist  Church  in  New 
York  City  and  a  classmate  of  Daniel  at  the 
Seminary,  writes  in  a  letter  of  condolence  to 
his  bereft  widow,  in  regard  to  this  as  follows : 
'*He  was  a  classmate  of  mine  at  the  Seminary. 
We  had  many  courses  together,  and  I  knew 
him  well,  and  all  who  knew  him  at  all,  loved, 
admired  and  respected  him.  He  was  a  rare 
Christian  character,  manly,  hopeful,  true  and 
gloriously  ambitious  in  the  Christian  way — 
ambitious  for  Christ." 

In  the  same  strain  one  of  his  professors, 
Dr.  Henry  Sloane  Coffin,  writes :  ''He  was  one 
of  the  best  loved  students  in  the  Seminary 
and  one  who  showed  great  promise,  particu- 
larly as  a  pastor." 

Yes,   Daniel   H.   Overton  was   a  good   man 


24  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

who  showed  great  promise.  But  why  such  a 
man  should  be  removed  at  the  start  of  his 
useful  activity,  we  are  unable  to  fathom  and  it 
will  remain  at  least  for  this  w(^rld  a  mystery. 
Sufficient  for  us  to  know  that  it  is  God's  will 
and  God  makes  no  mistakes. 


REV.   DANIEL   HAWKINS   OVERTON 

(By  John  J.   Foust) 

Born    in    Southold,    N.    Y.,    September    5th, 

Graduated  from  Lafayette  College,  Easton, 
Pa.,  1918. 

Married  to  Miss  Marian  Watson  Foust,  May 
11th,  1918. 

Graduated  from  Union  Theological  Semi- 
nary, New  York,  1920. 

Ordained  in  his  father's  church,  Islip,  N.  Y., 
1920. 

Began  pastorate  at  Mattituck,  L.  I.,  May 
22d,  1920. 

Crowned  February  28th,  1921.  Twenty-four 
years  and  six  months  of  life ! 

This  is  the  number  of  his  days,  and  above 
are  the  outstanding  events  of  his  brief  earthly 
career.  But  this  recital  does  not  tell  the  whole 
story  of  his  life. 

*'We  live  in  deeds,  not  years ;  in  thought,  not 
breaths ; 
In  feelings,  not  in  figures  on  the  dial. 
We  should  count  time  by  heart-throbs.     He 
most  lives 
Who  thinks  most,  feels  noblest,  acts  the  best." 

23 


26  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

Daniel  Overton  was  a  slave  to  a  great  ab- 
sorbing passion  for  an  ideal.  He  did  not  hold 
it,  but  in  a  most  real  sense  it  held  him  a 
prisoner.  His  only  release  was  in  expression. 
He  believed  a  great  portion  of  the  human 
race  were  hampered  and  wickedly  hindered 
by  inequalities  of  birth  that  were  unnecessary, 
and  by  physical  limitations  that  could  and 
should  be  removed.  He  saw  ''personality, 
with  rich  possibilities  in  it,  everywhere  nipped 
and  stunted,  its  flowers  unopened,  its  fruit  un- 
borne."  He  felt  himself  called  of  God  to  raise 
his  voice  in  behalf  of  "the  terribly  handicapped 
and  beaten  masses  of  mankind,  whipped  by 
poverty,  sickness,  ignorance,  and  sin,"  and 
against  those  who  ruthlessly  profiteered  by 
their  weakness.  He  was  perfectly  fearless  in 
the  declaration  of  his  principles  because  he 
was  so  confident  of  their  correctness  and  time- 
liness. He  was  by  nature  fitted  to  become  the 
tireless  advocate  of  an  unpopular  cause.  He 
had  the  martyr  spirit  and  would  have  paid  the 
utmost  cost  rather  than  keep  silent  while 
great  wrongs  needed  to  be  made  right.  He 
was  completely  enamored  of  his  one  great  pur- 
pose. All  else  took  its  place  in  relation  to  it. 
He  bought  books  and  pamphlets  on  his  great 
themes.     Everybody  he  met  soon  learned  their 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  2  7 

contents  and  was  urged  to  read  them.  He 
would  read  incessantly  and  so  intently  that 
anything  could  happen  around  him  and  not 
disturb  him  while  his  own  soul  responded  to 
the  soul  of  the  author.  His  espousal  of  his 
cause  was  not  the  result  of  reading  alone. 
Before  he  was  of  age,  he  spent  his  summers 
earning  his  pin  money  by  working  on  the  high- 
ways and  digging  trenches  with  foreigners. 
While  he  was  in  this  way  building  up  his 
splendid  body,  he  had  the  rare  opportunity  of 
studying  at  close  range  the  people  exemplify- 
ing his  views.  In  his  rollicking  moods  he 
would  occasionaly  imitate  the  language  of 
these  workmen,  reproducing  their  very  words, 
tone  of  voice  and  look.  But  his  fun  making 
had  no  slur  or  reproach  for  the  men  them- 
selves. If  it  be  true  that  "familiarity  breeds 
contempt"  it  w^as  not  so  here.  No  laboring 
man  could  ever  have  had  a  truer  representative 
nor  more  ardent  advocate  than  he  who  laid 
down  the  pick  and  shovel  and  went  into  the 
pulpit,  which  he  kept  sacred  to  the  eloquent 
espousal  of  their  cause. 

He  hated  shams.  He  would  never  have  en- 
joyed the  life  of  the  idle  rich.  He  loved  people 
for  what  they  were  not  because  of  what  they 
possessed  or  what  they  might  mean  to  him  if 


28  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

they  became  his  friends.  He  had  a  great  pro- 
gramme for  his  own  life  and  wanted  his  friends 
and  especially  his  Church  to  discover  and 
adopt  it  for  their  very  own.  He  had  a  simplicity 
like  that  of  his  Divine  Master,  and  in  his  great- 
est victories  it  kept  him  modest  and  unasser- 
tive. Religion  to  him,  was  life,  not  simply  a 
set  of  holy  principles,  or  pious  emotions. 
Life,  which,  if  it  had  been  greatly  blessed  and 
therefore  had  become  beautiful,  had  accord- 
ingly greater  obligations  to  those  from  whom 
these  things  had  been  denied  or  w^ithheld. 
'*No  mystic  voices  from  the  heavens  above 

Now  satisfy  the  souls  which  Christ  confess  ; 
Their  heavenly  vision  is  in  works  of  love, 

A  new  age  summons  to  new  saintliness. 
Before  the  uncloistered  shrine  of  human  needs 

And  all  unconscious  of  the  worth  or  price. 
They  lay  their  fragrant  gifts  of  gracious  deeds 

Upon  the  altar  of  self-sacrifice." 

His  home  life  was  ideal.  His  love  for  his  wafe 
was  a  holy  and  sacred  experience.  She  was 
his  other  self.  They  were  well  mated,  each 
complementing  the  other.  His  fatherhood 
was  beautifully  revealed  in  his  relation  to  his 
own  boy.  What  a  picture  of  parental  love  to 
see  this  ])hysical  giant  of  a  father  tenderly 
carrying  that  litt'e  bit  of  humanity.     Anyone 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  29 

hearing  him  plan  for  wife  and  boy  would  know 
that  his  very  soul  was  mortgaged  forever  to  his 
own.  The  memory  of  this  loving  young  father 
hovers  as  a  sacred  presence  over  the  suddenly 
and  inexplicably  broken  home  circle. 

His  Church  was  his  world.  The  people 
were  his  other  family.  He  saw  them  as  in- 
dividuals and  planned  for  them  separately. 
He  knew  no  preferences.  He  loved  them  as 
those  for  whom  God  would  hold  him  account- 
able. There  is  a  kind  of  tender  pathos  in  the 
special  privilege  his  Mattituck  people  enjoyed. 
They  received  his  only  ministry,  except  as  he 
had  preached  occasionally  in  various  places. 
He  had  prepared  for  years.  He  had  studied  till 
late  at  night.  He  had  prayed,  toiled,  planned, 
hoped  and  sacrificed — and  all  just  for  this  one 
people.  No  one  else  ever  received  his  regular 
ministry.  His  sermons  were  prepared  in  the 
white  heat  of  his  early  manhood,  and  all  were 
spoken  to  this  one  audience.  An  entire  life, 
lived  on  high  levels,  exhausted  in  this  one 
service.  This  is  indeed  a  peculiarly  sacred 
privilege  for  those  who  composed  his  only 
parish,  and  who  received  his  very  soul's  life. 

The  light  of  his  candle  has  gone  out!  Many 
years  had  been  carefully  spent  in  fashioning 
a  special  model  so  that  it  might  be  big  and 
strong  and   of  such   a   quality   as   to  give   no 


30  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

uncertain  Hg-ht.  It  was  to  stand  in  a  large 
place  for  a  long  time.  It  was  to  give  light  in 
high  places  so  that  men  could  see  their  way, 
especially  those  who  were  compelled  to  live 
and  struggle  in  the  low  places.  Many  did  find 
their  way  while  this  light  shined  —  a  path 
illuminated  all  the  way  to  God. 

Then  some  unruly  boisterous  wind  blew  out 
the  candle,  and  broke  the  candlestick.  There 
is  darkness  and  the  brilliant  light  is  only  a 
memory.  Many  sit  in  this  darkness  and  won- 
der in  amazement.  Who  shall  tell  them  why 
this  much  needed  light  is  gone? 

"The  people  that  walked  in  darkness  have 
seen  a  great  light :  and  they  that  dwell  in  the 
land  of  the  shadow  of  death,  upon  them  hath 
the  light  shined." 

Jesus,  the  light  of  world,  said:  **Let  not  your 
heart  be  troubled,  neither  let  it  be  afraid."  "I 
am  the  resurrection  and  the  life,  whosoever 
liveth  and  believeth  in  Me  shall  never  die." 
"My  strength  is  made  perfect  in  weakness." 
"Come  unto  Me,  all  ye  who  labor  and  are 
heavy  laden  and  I  will  give  you  rest."  "What 
I  do  thou  knowest  not  now  but  thou  shalt 
know  hereafter."  "I  am  come  that  ye  might  have 
life  and  that  ye  might  have  it  more  abun- 
dantly." 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  ^I 

**Yet  Love  will  dream  and  Faith  will  trust, 
Since  he  who  knows  our  need  is  just, 
That  somehow,  somewhere,  meet  we  must. 
Alas  for  him  who  never  sees 
The  stars  shine  through  his  cypress  trees ! 
Who  hopeless  lays  his  dead  away, 
Nor  looks  to  see  the  breaking  day 
Across  the  mournful  marbles  play ; 
Who  hath  not  learned  in  hours  of  faith 
The  truth  to  flesh  and  sense  unknown, 
That  life  is  ever  Lord  of  Death 
And  Love  can  never  lose  its  own/' 


MR.  OVERTON  AS  PASTOR  AND 
PREACHER 

(By  Terry  W.  Tuthill) 

It  is  indeed  rare  to  find  a  single  personality 
presenting  the  many-sided  development  which 
was  found  in  our  young  pastor,  Daniel  Over- 
ton. In  his  character  there  existed  to  an 
unusual  degree  those  varied  qualities  of  mind 
and  heart  which  made  him  at  once  both  a  good 
preacher  and  a  good  pastor.  He  was  the  con- 
secrated exponent  of  an  ideal ;  but  he  was, 
also,  the  practical  leader  of  men.  He  inspired 
his  co-workers  with  the  consciousness  of  the 
beauty  of  true  service ;  the  consciousness, 
which  he  himself  possessed,  that  service  for 
the  Master  is  not  merely  a  duty  but  an  honor. 
He  felt,  and  made  others  feel,  that  the  work  of 
Christ's  Kingdom  should,  however,  be  done 
not  only  lovingly  and  earnestly,  but  also 
efficiently. 

Shortly  before  his  illness,  Mr.  Overton  sent 
in  to  the  headquarters  of  the  New  Era  Move- 
ment a  report  of  what  had  been  done  in  the 
Mattituck  Church  in  carrying  out  the  policies 
of  that  organization.  He  received  in  reply  a 
letter  of  congratulation,  stating  that  his  church 

33 


34  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

had  accomi)lished  more  of  the  objectives  rec- 
ommended than  had  any  other  church  in  the 
outlying  districts. 

One  of  the  first  bits  of  organization  which 
Mr.  Overton  effected  was  that  of  his  Sunday 
School  class.  A  president  and  a  secretary 
were  elected,  and  the  class,  which  grew  rapidly 
in  numbers,  became  greatly  interested  in  the 
discussion  of  such  timely  subjects  of  every 
day  life  as  were  suggested  by  him  from  time 
to  time.  Monthly  meetings  were  held  at  which 
games  and  refreshments  were  enjoyed,  fol- 
lowed by  discussions  of  topics  of  the  day.  One 
of  the  tenets  strongly  held  by  Mr.  Overton 
was  that  Religion  cannot  be  kept  separate  from 
the  other  interests  of  the  true  Christian's  life. 
In  a  sermon  delivered  a  short  time  before  his 
death,  he  expressed  the  idea  something  like 
this :  The  true  Christian  cannot  pigeonhole 
in  his  mind  the  different  interests  of  his  every- 
day life,  and  say,  "This  is  a  matter  of  politics  ; 
this,  a  matter  of  recreation ;  and  this,  of  re- 
ligion." God  is  spirit  and  that  spirit  should 
permeate  and  control  all  the  activities  to  which 
a  follower  of  Christ  sets  his  hand.  Therefore, 
Mr.  Overton  thought  it  not  wrong  to  intro- 
duce into  religious  meetings  many  subjects 
commonly    considered    to    be    purely     in    the 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  35 

sphere  of  economics  or  politics.  He  endeav- 
ored to  apply  Christian  principles  to  the  prob- 
lems of  everyday  existence  and  thus  to  make 
them  a  vital,  active  force  in  men's  lives.  It 
cannot  be  doubted  that  his  ultimate  aim  was 
the  personal  salvation  of  the  members  of  his 
flock.  "Evidence  of  this  is  given  by  the  fact 
that  shortly  before  his  death  he  asked  each 
member  of  his  Sunday  School  class  to  w^rite 
out  a  personal  creed  embodying  each  one's 
religious  beliefs.  His  death  came  before  many 
of  these  were  completed ;  but,  in  asking  for 
these  expressions  of  belief,  he  was  utilizing 
one  of  the  greatest  working  principles  of  peda- 
gogy :  i.  e.,  working  from  the  known  to  the 
unknown — from  the  problems  of  the  material 
life  to  those  of  the  spiritual.  The  creed  which 
he  himself  wrote  speaks  for  itself  of  his  own 
unfaltering  faith. 

In  September  came  the  organization  of  the 
Hour  Club,  in  this  manner:  a  paper  with  the 
following  heading  was  circulated  for  signa- 
tures among  the  members  of  the  church  and 
congregation : 

"We,  the  undersigned,  being  convinced  that 
the  work  of  the  church  can  be  accomplished 
only  by  the  concentrated  efforts  of  her  mem- 
bers, do  hereby  pledge  ourselves  to  devote  to 


36  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

such  work  as  the  Pastor's  Cabinet  may  direct 
at  least  one  hour  every  week,  unless  prevented 
by  a  reason  we  could  conscientiously  give  our 
Master."  While  to  some  the  signing  of  the 
paper  seemed  like  the  signing  of  a  blank 
check,  yet  such  was  their  confidence  in  their 
I)astor's  judgment  and  fairness  that  some  two 
hundred  placed  their  names  on  the  list.  A 
member  of  Mr.  Overton's  Cabinet  was  given 
charge  of  this  branch  of  the  work  and,  with 
the  advice  of  the  other  Cabinet  members,  sent 
out  weekly  assignments  to  those  who  had  en- 
rolled. These  duties  were  varied,  sometimes 
changing  from  week  to  week;  but  their  objec- 
tive was  always  the  furtherance  of  the  King- 
dom. Later,  these  members  of  the  Hour  Club 
were  divided  geographically  into  groups  of  five 
or  six  families.  From  each  unit  a  ''group 
leader"  was  selected  wdiose  duty  it  w^as  to  call 
on  the  "shut-ins,"  report  new  cases  of  illness 
to  the  Pastor's  Cabinet,  watch  out  for  prospec- 
tive members,  spur  on  the  lagging  ones,  dis- 
tribute religious  literature  and  in  every  way 
possible  further  the  work  of  the  Church  in 
that  unit.  The  work  of  the  Hour  Club  resulted 
in  quickening  all  the  existing  organizations  of 
the  Church  and  in  stimulating  the  sense  of  per- 
sonal responsibility  toward  them. 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  3  7 

Some  time  previous  to  Mr.  Overton's  coming 
here  the  pastors  of  the  Cntchogue  churches,  to- 
gether with  several  of  the  teachers  in  their 
Sunday  Schools,  had  organized  themselves  into 
a  Teachers'  Training  Class  and  had  been  hold- 
ing weekly  meetings.  Their  objectives  were 
the  training  of  new  teachers  to  take  the  places 
left  vacant  from  time  to  time ;  a  better  under- 
standing of  the  subject  matter  of  the  Sunday 
School  lessons,  and  the  stimulating  of  interest 
through  interchange  of  ideas.  Mr.  Overton 
felt  that  the  members  of  the  Mattituck  Sunday 
School  were  missing  a  rare  opportunity  for  de- 
velopment in  not  joining  this  group  of  Bible 
students,  and  therefore  advocated  joining  with 
them.  He  met  with  hearty  co-operation  from 
his  Sunday  School  teachers  and  the  arrange- 
ment to  join  the  Cutchogue  people  at  their 
meetings  was  satisfactorily  made.  Thus  one 
more  organization  became  a  part  of  Mr.  Over- 
ton's work  among  us. 

The  choir  was  the  next  organization  to 
which  Mr.  Overton  turned  his  attention.  This 
branch  of  the  church's  activities  lacked  a 
leader,  and  he  realized  that,  while  the  mem- 
bers were  faithfully  and  conscientiously  doing 
their  best,  a  leader  to  assume  the  responsibility 
of  selecting  and  directing  the  music  was  im- 


38  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

perative.  Although  not  himself  a  musician, 
Mr.  Overton  realized  the  value  of  music  in 
Christian  worship  and  after  consulting  with 
the  Cabinet,  he  laid  the  matter  before  a  young 
man — a  member  of  the  choir — and  asked  him 
to  consider  taking  the  leadership.  To  a  young 
man  of  only  slight  musical  training  and  no 
experience  as  a  leader,  this  seemed  a  great  deal 
to  ask.  But  Duty  from  the  lips  of  Mr.  Over- 
ton was  a  mighty  word,  and  how  could  one 
refuse  its  insistent  call  when  he  who  voiced  its 
call  was  so  unquestioningly  following  whither- 
soever it  led  him?  It  was  impossible  to  refuse. 
When,  after  a  few^  days  of  consideration,  the 
young  man  told  Mr.  Overton  that  he  would 
undertake  the  work  of  choir  leader,  Mr.  Over- 
ton showed  much  pleasure  but  little  surprise. 
Turning  to  a  member  of  his  family  he  said,  'T 
knew  he  would  take  the  choir.  I  have  been 
praying  that  he  would  every  night  since  I 
asked  him."  Under  the  new  leader  and  with  the 
help  of  the  Hour  Club  assignments,  the  regu- 
lar choir  soon  numbered  fifteen  or  more,  and 
at  the  Christmas  season  some  thirty  singers 
gladly  gave  their  time  to  the  preparation  and 
presentation  of  the  Christmas  music.  What- 
ever   the    new    choirmaster    wished    to    do    to 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  39 

make  the  choir  as  orderly  and  efficient  an  or- 
ganization as  the  other  branches  of  the  church 
work  were  becoming,  met  with  sympathetic 
and  cordial  support  from  Mr.  Overton.  At 
the  time  of  his  death,  the  choir  was  asked  to 
do  what  seemed  at  first  an  impossible  thing — 
to  sing  at  the  funeral  service  of  their  dear 
young  pastor.  But  the  sense  of  Duty,  so 
strong  in  him  and  so  fearlessly  obeyed  by 
him,  came  to  their  aid,  and  so,  bravely,  through 
their  tears  they  paid  their  tribute  in  a  Chris- 
tian hymn. 

The  organization  which  was  probably 
dearest  to  Mr.  Overton  and  knew  best  what 
was  in  his  mind  and  heart  to  do  for  his  people 
was  his  Cabinet.  Early  in  his  minstry  he 
gathered  about  him  five  young  men — members 
of  the  church — whom  he  organized  into  an 
advisory  council,  known  as  the  "Pastor's 
Cabinet."  To  one  member  was  entrusted  su- 
pervision of  the  work  of  Church  Extension ;  to 
another,  the  work  of  Organization ;  to  another. 
Service ;  to  another.  Stewardship ;  to  another. 
Missions.  Pastor  and  cabinet  held  frequent 
meetings,  at  which  various  phases  of  the 
church  work  were  discussed.  Much,  indeed, 
might  be  said  of  the  results  accomplished  by 
this  earnest  group  of  young  men ;  much,  much 


40  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

more  of  what  they  planned  to  do.  One  thin^^. 
however,  is  sufficient  to  show  the  deep  and 
lasting  nature  of  the  work  Mr.  Overton  began 
in  them,  and  it  is  this — that  in  the  face  of  the 
terrible  and  irreparable  loss  of  their  brave 
young  leader,  the}'  highly  resolved  to  keep  on 
with  the  w^ork  he  had  begun,  each  in  his  own 
department  as  best  he  could.  Lacking  the 
stimulation  and  guidance  of  his  companion- 
ship, this  w^as  for  them  a  courageous  thing  to 
attempt. 

As  a  pastor,  Mr.  Overton  possessed  the  rare 
ability  to  be  ''all  things  to  all  men."  The  loss 
of  his  dear  parents  and  his  own  self-imposed 
study  of  human  nature  made  him  unusually 
responsive  to  the  moods  of  his  people.  In 
trouble,  his  ready  sympathy  brought  genuine 
comfort  to  the  sad ;  in  joy,  his  alert  mind,  keen 
humor  and  full  enjoyment  of  life  made  him  a 
congenial  companion,  —  added  zest  to  every 
pleasure.  How  fully  he  entered  into  the  ex- 
periences of  his  people  is  shown  by  the  fact 
that  he  spent  an  entire  morning  reading  and 
studying  a  certain  poem  which  he  had  been 
asked  to  read  at  the  burial  service  of  a  dear 
friend  in  order  to  convey  to  the  bereaved  ones 
in  that  final  reading  all  the  comfort  and  cheer 
that  he  could  express. 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  41 

It  must  not  be  supposed  that  recreation  occu- 
pied no  place  in  Mr.  Overton's  life.  No  one 
loved  good  clean  sport  better  than  he.  Tennis, 
baseball  and  various  v^ater  sports  he  enjoyed 
keenly,  but  football,  which  demands  quick 
thinking,  pliant  muscles,  and  great  strength, 
was  the  sport  he  enjoyed  best. 

As  Scout  Master  he  became  the  idol  of  some 
twenty  or  more  boys  with  whom  he  worked 
out  the  lore  of  Scout  Manual  and  other 
branches  of  Scout  practice.  Last  fall,  he  took 
his  band  of  Scouts  on  a  short  camping  expedi- 
tion at  the  Sound.  This  will  be  remembered 
by  many  of  them  as  a  wonderful  experience. 

Mr.  Overton  was  a  member  of  the  Matti- 
tuck  Basketball  Team  and  recognized  as  one 
of  the  best  players  Mattituck  had.  He  entered 
into  the  game  with  the  same  whole-hearted 
spirit  which  characterized  his  work  as  our 
pastor.  He  loved  a  good  swift  game  and,  as  a 
good  sportsman,  took  his  rebuffs  with  a  smile. 

As  a  preacher,  Daniel  Overton  was  a  com- 
pelling personality.  Every  sermon,  every  lec- 
ture, even  every  "short  talk"  given  at  the  fre- 
quent "musical  services"  which  occurred  dur- 
ing his  pastorate,  was  prepared  in  the  most 
careful  and  painstaking  manner.  His  selection 
and  arrangement  of  material,  relentless  logic, 


42  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

and  mastery  of  language  held  the  attention  of 
all,  while  his  simple,  straightforward,  manly 
delivery  added  much  to  the  impressiveness  of 
his  message.  Mr.  Overton  did  not  preach  any- 
thing merely  to  please  his  hearers  but  rather 
preached  what  he  thought  they  ought  to  hear, 
regardless  of  the  consequences.  When,  at 
times,  his  voice,  always  clear  and  ringing,  held 
a  note  of  admonition  or  warning,  it  seemed  as 
if  John  the  Baptist  or  one  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment prophets  stood  before  us. 

Mr.  Overton  possessed  to  an  unusual  degree 
those  qualities  which  lead  to  universal  popu- 
larity. Many,  whose  beliefs  and  practices  dif- 
fered from  his  admired  the  fearlessness  and 
conscientiousness  with  which  he  expressed  his 
own  ideas.  Above  all,  his  rare  smile  and  con- 
stant good  nature  endeared  him  to  all.  People 
who  met  him  but  casually  found  much  in  him 
to  admire  and  imitate.  To  all  who  love  "a 
sound  mind  in  a  sound  body"  he  was  the  em- 
bodiment of  that  ideal.  To  those  who  worked 
with  him  and  knew  him  best  his  death  means 
an  irreparable  loss. 

It  may  be  truthfully  said  that  Mr.  Overton 
never  lost  sight  of  his  high  ideals  and  to  them 
he  devoted  all  his  wonderful  energy.  With  a 
fearlessness  born  of  perfect  faith  in  the   ulti- 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  43 

mate  triumph  of  good  over  evil,  he  was  to  his 
flock— 

"One  who  never  turned  his  back  but  marched 
breast  forward. 
Never  doubted  clouds  would  break ; 
Never    dreamed,    though    right   were  worsted, 
wrong  would  triumph. 
Held   we   fall    to   rise,   are   baffled    to   fight 
better.     Sleep  to  wake." 


SOLIDARITY 

Sermon  delivered  by  Rev.  Daniel  H.  Over- 
ton at  the  Mattituck  Presbyterian  Church : 

Matt. :  23  :37.  O  Jerusalem,  Jerusalem,  that 
killeth  the  prophets,  and  stoneth  them  that  are 
sent  unto  her!  how  often  would  I  have  gath- 
ered thy  children  together,  even  as  a  hen  gath- 
ereth  her  chickens  under  her  wings,  and  ye 
would  not ! 

In  this  text  we  have  a  statement  of  the 
purpose  of  Christ's  ministry,  and  of  the  reason 
for  its  temporary  failure.  Jerusalem  had  great 
need  of  that  unifying  principle  which  Christ 
proposed.  Her's  was  no  "splendid  isolation" 
of  wastes  of  waters,  behind  which  slack  prac- 
tices and  disunion  could  safely  bide  unchal- 
lenged. For  Israel,  disunion  meant  subjuga- 
tion, subjugation  of  a  very  bitter  sort,  under 
Roman  slavers  and  tax  extortioners.  United, 
her  case  was  by  no  means  hopeless.  The  little 
republic  of  Switzerland  defied  the  Hapsburg 
power,  and  has  held  her  freedom  in  the  very 
center  of  the  milling  wars  of  Europe's  nations 
for  centuries.  Israel  herself,  united  tempora- 
rily under  the  Maccabees,  scored  victories  over 
the  great  Antiochus  of  Syria.  But  then  came 
dissension,  and  defeat.     .     .     . 

45 


46  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

When  Jesus  entered  the  field  of  Israel's 
affairs,  he  found  "much  cynicism  and  not  a 
Httle  despondency."  He  found  dark  hopeless- 
ness, lit  through  at  irregular  intervals  with 
the  lightnings  of  abortive  revolutionary  hopes. 
He  found  despair  and  voices  crying,  "Lo  here," 
and  *'Lo,  there !"  He  found  runnings  hither 
and  yon,  and  desperate  deeds  in  the  darkness, 
and  soldiers  marching  away  with  the  precisic^n 
of  long  training,  and  huddled  -bodies  of  the 
slain,  in  the  gray  daw^ning  of  a  new  day  of  toil 
and  bitterness. 

He  found  the  people  scattered  over  the 
mountains  as  sheep  that  have  no  shepherd ; 
and  he  set  himself  to  shepherd  them,  knowing 
full  well  with  what  enmity  the  wolves  of 
Rome  and  that  old  fox,  Herod  would  meet  his 
efforts.  Unity  was  the  need  of  the  people,  a 
principle  of  unification  that  should  be  potent 
enough  to  override  the  petty  hostilities  and 
bickerings  one  with  another  that  kept  the  peo- 
ple divided.  A  house  that  is  divided  against 
itself  shall  not  stand.     Hearken,  oh  Jerusalem  ! 

But  the  factional  spirit  was  too  strong 
among  the  Jew^s.  It  won  a  temporary  triumph 
over  fellowship.  Even  in  the  face  of  Roman 
oppression,  the  Jews  could  not  unite,  could 
not  forget  their  differences  to  make  common 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  47 

cause  against  the  oppressor,  the  dcspoiler  of 
their  country  and  the  enslaver  of  their  youths 
and  maidens.  While  Roman  armies  laid  seige 
to  Jerusalem,  within  the  starving  city,  swept 
by  pestilence,  two  Jewish  factions  fought 
against  each  other.  One  held  the  temple,  the 
other  the  palace.  A  house  divided  against  it- 
self can  not  stand.  No  wonder  Jerusaletti  fell, 
in  the  year  of  our  Lord  70,  and  was  utterly 
destroyed.  Its  obstinate  separatism  was  in- 
curable. No  wonder,  toward  the  close  of  his 
ministry,  foreseeing  the  inevitable  end,  Jesus 
had  wrung  from  his  heart  that  passionate 
lament,  ''O  Jerusalem,  Jerusalem,  how  often 
would  I  have  gathered  thy  children  together, 
and  ye  w^ould  not!  Behold,  your  house  is  left 
unto  you  desolate."  From  the  earliest  days 
until  the  end,  the  history  of  Israel  is  a  story  of 
"doubt  and  lame  division,  of  discord  and  de- 
feat." It  is  Judah  against  Israel,  Jerusalem 
against  Samaria,  Pharisee  and  Sadducee,  dis- 
cord among  brethren,  back-stabbings  in  the 
dark,  blood  and  tears.  Not  the  many  splen- 
did attributes  of  the  Jewish  character,  not 
the  clear  sight  of  the  prophets,  not  the 
wisdom  of  Jesus  himself,  prevailed  at  the  last 
against  this  incurable  separatism,  to  save 
Jerusalem    from    utter    destruction.      ''Rachel 


48  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

weeping  for  her  children  and  refusing  to  be 
comforted.  Behold,  your  house  is  left  unto 
you  desolate." 

Need  we  look  far  abroad  to  realize  the  simi- 
larity of  our  estate  to-day.  We  have  just  come 
through  a  devastating  war — a  war  made  pos- 
sible by  our  failure  to  recognize  our  common 
brotherhood.  As  long  as  any  people  look  upon 
the  men  of  another  nation  as  fundamentally 
different,  as  having  anything  but  the  same 
essential  passions  and  desires,  we  will  have 
wars.  Before  a  stable  world  peace  can  be  con- 
summated we  must  realize  the  oneness  of  the 
race.  From  the  viewpoint  of  anthropological 
science,  H.  G.  Wells  has  showed  us  the  fallacy 
of  attaching  importance  to  the  national  divi- 
sions under  which  the  world  is  at  present  or- 
ganized. He  demonstrates  by  carefully  align- 
ing his  facts,  that  Europe  itself  is  no  less  a 
melting-pot  than  America.  He  shows  the  suc- 
cessive waves  of  invasion  raining  dowm  from 
the  steppes  of  Asia  on  the  Mediterranean  civi- 
lizations. From  his  maps  and  tables  there  is 
but  one  conclusion  possible.  The  races  of 
Europe  are  only  slightly  varying  mixtures  of 
the  same  Nordic,  Mediterranean,  and  Mongol 
stocks;  and  they   are  but   one  degree   further 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  49 

removed  from  the  common  ancestry  of  the 
whole  world. 

Thus  does  science  come  to  the  aid  of  Chris- 
tianity in  her  propaganda  for  world  brother- 
hood. But  the  faith  in  world  brotherhood  was 
never  a  baseless  theory.  Christ  made  that 
faith  out  of  the  raw  material  of  his  experience, 
out  of  personal  contacts  with  men  of  many 
nations  and  persuasions,  at  the  cross-roads  of 
the  world.  And  this  faith  is  the  center  of 
Christian  faith.  Brotherhood  is  what  gives 
color  to  the  central  teaching  of  the  Kingdom. 
Brotherhood  accepted  and  acted  upon,  is  the 
condition  of  God's  favor — and  Christ's.  "Inas- 
much as  ye  have  done  it  unto  the  least  of  these, 
MY  BRETHREN.     .     .     ." 

Now,  before  you  begin  to  say  in  your  heart, 
"Oh  yes,  brotherhood,"  and  to  settle  back  with 
the  comfortable  heedlessness  with  which  we 
always  greet  the  familiar,  let  us  take  notice  of 
what  brotherhood  means.  It  means  that  you 
shall  count  Germans  your  brothers,  discount- 
ing the  war  hysteria.  It  means  that  Jews  are 
your  brothers,  and  negroes,  and  Chinamen, 
and  Russian  Bolsheviks.  It  means  that  there 
IS  no  supportable  evidence  for  the  claim  of 
those  in  privileged  positions,  that  some  are 
born    to    toil    and    want,    and    some    to    ease. 


50  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

Brotherhood  means  that,  when  we  seek  to 
understand  the  reason  for  any  human  event, 
for  Germany's  madness,  for  Russia's  revolu- 
tion, for  Irish  combativeness,  for  what  we  in 
our  damnable  pride  style  the  negro's  "insol- 
ence," we  will  search  our  own  hearts.  For  in 
the  heart  of  each  man  are  those  same  impulses, 
and,  given  the  same  conditions,  they  would 
bear  the  very  same  fruit.  Not  only  are,  as 
Kipling  says,  **the  Colonel's  lady  and  Judy 
O'Grady  sisters  under  their  skins,"  but  the 
church  member  in  his  comfortable  pew,  and 
the  murderer  spending  an  unpleasant  minute 
in  a  great  grim  arm-chair,  are  brothers,  and 
closer  brothers  than  they  can  know. 

What  we  most  need  in  this  day  of  wars  that 
are  world-wide,  of  unrest  and  industrial  strife 
that  threaten  the  structure  of  society,  is  a 
realization  of  this  relationship,  a  grasp  of  the 
fact  that  we  are  sons  of  the  one  Father. 
Every  other  way  lies  ruin.  Under  the  inven- 
tions of  man,  the  earth  shrinks.  It  becomes 
too  small  for  hatred  and  contempt.  It  offers 
room  only  for  fellowship,  or  death. 

But,  even  as  Jerusalem  beseiged  by  Roman 
armies,  we  are  stubbornly  divisive.  Our  safety 
and  our  happiness  depend  on  our  achieving 
solidarity,  and  that  right  soon.     Yet  there  is 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  51 

m  our  hearts  the  same  obstinate   separatism 
"O  Jerusalem,  Jerusalem,  how  often  would  I 
have  gathered  thy  children  together,  as  a  hen 
gathereth  her  chickens  under  her  wing,  and  ye 
would  not !" 

And  ye  would  not !  We  have  in  our  tradi- 
tion the  memory  of  a  great  war-cry,  ''United 
we  stand ;  divided  we  fall."  There  is  a  truth 
with  an  ever-widening  horizon.  Not  only  the 
colonies  in  their  revolution,  but  the  world  in 
its  need,  must  learn  that  lesson.  But  we 
have  not  learned  it.  The  extent  of  our  rebel- 
lion of  the  wisdom  of  our  fathers  we  do  not 
yet  realize.  We  are  becoming  like  Israel, 
hopelessly,  obstinately  separatist.  We  are  re- 
fusing Christ's  call  to  solidarity. 

Here  is  a  day  when  upon  the  tongue  of  ev- 
ery thinker  is  one  great  truth,  that  the  most 
important  thing  about  any  man  is  his  relation 
to  others.  Whatever  value  is  in  the  mystic 
experiences  of  his  inner  life,  is  subordinate,  and 
indeed  is  to  be  measured  by  its  outworking  in 
his  relation  to  society.  We  have,  in  theory  got 
rid  of  statics.  Everything  is  relationship.  Ev- 
ery value  is  ultimately  a  social  value.  To  ac- 
complish this  has  taken  nineteen  centuries  of 
Christ. 

Yet  at  the  end  of  these  nineteen  centuries, 


52  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

when  the  social  emphasis  is  estabUshed  — 
when  the  social  gospel  is  being  recognized 
as  the  true  orthodoxy  —  when  social  service 
is  an  avowed  end  of  the  Church  ;  it  remains 
anathema  to  make  an  ism  of  that  service. 
To  avow  social  purposes,  and  make  the  very 
name  socialism  anathema —  is  that  not  con- 
clusive proof  that  our  fine  words  of  brother- 
hood are  words  only,  that  we  will  not  tol- 
erate the  practicing  of  what  we  preach? 

Let  it  not  be  supposed  for  an  instant 
that  I  think  all  Christians  must  of  necessity 
be  Socialists,  in  the  sense  in  which  that  term 
is  used  as  the  designation  of  a  political  party. 
But  understand  clearly,  every  true  Christian 
must  be  a  socialist  in  the  sense  in  which  that 
term  is  used  as  the  opposite  of  individualist,  as 
basicly  opposed  to  separatisni  and  divisicm. 
As  regards  the  party  of  that  name — well,  that 
is  a  distinct  question,  pertinent  indeed  to  our 
subject,  but  too  lengthy  to  be  discussed  here. 
We  may,  however,  touch  upon  it  as  far  as  it 
serves  to  illustrate  our  stubborn  resistance  to 
Christ,  our  Jerusalemite  refusal  to  be  gathered 
together  in  a  solidaristic  fellowship  under  Him. 
For  here  is  a  party  that  avows  a  universal 
brotherhood,  as  opposed  to  the  divisive  hatreds 
and  brawling  of  nationalist  states,  that  aims 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  53 

at  the  breaking  of  barriers,  the  elimination  of 
conditions  which  makes  for  unchristian  distinc- 
tion between  man  and  man.  Now  that  is  a 
Christian  purpose.  The  purposes  of  other 
parties  are  avowedly  nationalistic.  Tn  repcct 
to  internal  affairs,  they  are  avowedly  separat- 
ist, seeking  to  perpetuate  class  distinctions. 

I  am  not  debating  methods.  For  the  pres- 
ent, I  have  not  the  slightest  concern  over  the 
relative  adminstrative  merits  of  the  parties 
under  consideration.  Considerations  of  abil- 
ity, of  wisdom  as  to  ways  and  means,  of  sin- 
cerity, may  justify  your  vote.  But  none  of 
these  can  possibly  justify  abusive  hostility  to 
the  only  organized  party  that  has  so  much  as 
avowed  a  Christian  purpose,  so  much  as  en- 
visioned a  universal  human  brotherhood.  The 
foundation  may  be  false.  The  superstructure 
may  be  false.  That  I  am  not  debating.  But 
the  purpose  is  Christian,  and  as  such,  demands 
a  more  Christian  considerateness  than  most 
Christians  give  it. 

What  is  the  explanation  of  our  intolerance? 
Is  it  not  that  we,  being  cynical  and  obstinately 
separatist,  are  reasonably  bitter  toward  those 
whose  idealism  has  more  vitality  than  ours? 
For  the  separatism  of  our  day  has  worked  its 
way  into  the  Church,  in  the  Church  of  Christ. 


54  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

Whose  heart  could  not  endure  the  discord  of 
His  day.  O  Jerusalem,  Jerusalem  !  Separatism 
has  come  into  the  Church,  not  only  to  divide 
the  Church  against  itself,  but  to  make  it  forget 
its  world  brotherhood.  Only  the  other  day  I 
heard  a  preacher  say  regarding  brotherhood, 
that  it  was  conditioned  on  acceptance  of  God's 
Fatherhood,  so  that  brotherhood  in  fact,  did 
not  exist  and  could  not  be  practiced  wnth  those 
outside  the  Church.  That  is  an  error  pecu- 
liarly easy  to  our  divisive  instincts,  an  error  all 
too  prevalent  in  Churches  of  all  ages.  The 
brotherhood  of  man  does  not  depend  upon  the 
acceptance  of  God's  Fatherhood.  It  depends 
upon  the  FACT  of  God's  Fatherhood.  It  does 
not  depend  on  the  acceptance  of  anything  at 
all.  It  is  here.  It  is  a  sober  fact.  We  are  of 
one  ancestry — and  of  one  destiny. 

Black  or  white,  Jew  or  Gentile,  farmer,  la- 
borer, artisan,  or  owner — One  is  our  Father, 
and  all  we  are  brethren.  We  are  of  one  nature, 
of  one  blood.  We  have  all  sinned.  Together 
we  must  address  ourselves  to  one  salvation. 
Let  us  not  fall  into  the  easy  error  of  ascribing 
all  unrighteousness  to  one  man,  whether  he  be 
Kaiser  or  President,  whether  he  be  labor  lead- 
er or  capitalist.  Common  impulses  run 
through    all    our    veins — passions,    greeds,    un- 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  35 

holy  ambitions  and  desires,  and  if  the  truth  be 
known,  common  yearnings  for  a  saner  living, 
for  a  kindHer  and  more  successful  day.  "I  saw 
all  the  oppressions  that  are  done  under  the 
sun :  and,  behold,  the  tears  of  such  as  were 
oppressed,  and  they  had  no  comforter:  and 
on  the  side  of  their  oppressors  there  was  pow- 
er; but  they  had  no  comforter."  Let  us  not 
be  harsh  in  our  judgment  upon  any  class  of 
men  in  this  bitter  struggle  that  is  the  only  life 
we  know.  The  judgments  of  God's  inexorable 
laws  are  harsh  enough  upon  them.  ''Vengeance 
is  mine,  I  will  repay,  saith  Jehovah."  But  let 
us  make  up  our  minds  that  we  are  brothers, 
and  being  bound  together  in  the  one  destiny, 
let  us  determine  that  that  destiny  shall  be 
for  good.  This  we  may  do,  if  we  will  but 
realize  that  our  interests  are  one,  and  turn  our 
best  abilities  from  strife  to  service.  Let  us 
desire  the  Kingdom  above  our  chief  joy.  O 
my  people,  give  not  our  Master  occasion  for 
such  lament  ;"0  Jerusalem,  Jerusalem,  how 
often  would  I  have  gathered  thy  children  to- 
gether, and  ye  would  not !" 

In  Christ  "there  cannot  be  Greek  and  Jew, 
circumcision  and  uncircumcision,  barbarian, 
Scythian,  bondman,  freeman  ;  but  Christ  is  all, 
and   in   all." 


A  PRAYER 

Eternal  Father,  unseen  yet  manifest,  we  be- 
lieve in  Thee.  Help  Thou  our  unbelief.  In 
matters  both  small  and  great,  remove  our 
doubts,  quiet  our  fears,  and  make  us  feel  safe 
in  the  security  of  Thy  presence.  We  wish  to 
believe ;  and  yet  we  are  beset  by  all  manner  of 
doubts. 

We  wish  to  serve  Thee  faithfully ;  and  yet 
our  heart  oftimes  fails  us.  As  Thy  Son  gave 
unquestionable  assurance  to  doubting  Thom- 
as, so  do  we  pray  Thee  to  make  us  firm  in  the 
great  questions  of  Thy  being.  Give  us  con- 
fidence that  Thou  art,  and  Thou  art  a  rewarder 
of  those  that  diligently  see  Thee,  and  serve 
Thee.  Yet  there  are  many  things  which  Thou 
did  not  ordain  that  man  should  know,  and 
many  the  time  of  whose  revealing  is  not  come. 
For  these  give  us  patience,  that  we  may  learn 
to  bear  without  resentment  Thy  divine  re- 
serve. Give  us  a  simple  faith  in  Thee,  and  a 
confidence  in  the  coming  of  Thy  kingdom 
upon  earth  ;  that  we  may  not  be  borne  down  by 
the  burden  of  this  unintelligible  world,  nor  by 
the  mystery  of  the  hiding  of  Thy  countenance 
from  mortal  eye.    For  now  in  the  half-blindness 

57 


53  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

of  our  selfish  interests,  we  see  Thee  but  as 
through  a  glass  darkly ;  yet  when  we  have 
learned  to  live  for  others,  then  we  shall  see 
Thee  face  to  face  in  Thy  kingdom  of  heaven 
on  earth.  In  the  name  of  Him  w^ho  lighted  the 
way  unto  this  kingdom.     Amen. 

DANIEL  H.  OVERTON. 


DEATH  AND  FUNERAL 

(By  Rev.  Chas.  E.  Craven,  D.  D.) 

On  Monday  morning,  February  28,  1921, 
the  Rev.  Daniel  H.  Overton,  finished  his 
earthly  course  at  the  Eastern  Long  Island 
Hospital  in  Greenport,  a  young  man  not  yet 
twenty-five  years  of  age,  who  had  been  but  a 
few  short  days  before  the  very  embodiment  of 
health  and  vigor. 

The  previous  Wednesday  evening  he  con- 
ducted the  mid-week  service,  apparently  in 
his  usual  good  health.  It  is  altogether  prob- 
able that  he  was  suffering  then  but  with 
characteristic  fortitude  gave  no  sign  of  it. 
Before  morning  it  became  necessary  for  him 
to  summon  medical  aid.  An  obscure  abdomi- 
nal trouble  developed  and  on  Saturday  he 
was  removed  to  the  hospital,  where  an  opera- 
tion was  performed  upon  him  Sunday  morn- 
ing, but  without  avail  to  the  saving  of  his 
precious  life. 

The  news  of  his  death  came  as  a  stunning 
blow  to  his  family  and  the  community.  It 
seemed  unbelievable.  Gradual  realization  of 
the  sad  truth  brought  profound  sorrow  to 
every  heart  and  home  in   Mattituck,  and  un- 

59 


60  DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON 

utterable  s\mpathy  for  Mrs.  Overton.  From 
near  and  far,  from  innumerable  friends  came 
messages  of  grief  and  sympathy. 

The  funeral  services  were  held  Thursday 
afternoon,  March  3d,  in  the  Mattituck  Pres- 
byterian Church,  where  he  had  ministered  not 
yet  a  full  year  in  this,  his  first  pastoral  charge. 
Many  ministers  of  the  Presbytery  of  Long 
Island  were  present  and  pastors  from  neigh- 
boring villages  of  all  denominations.  Luncheon 
was  served  at  the  parsonage  for  these  visiting 
minsters  by  the  kind  ladies  of  the  church. 

After  prayer  at  the  parsonage  and  proces- 
sion to  the  crowded  church  simple  and  tender 
services  were  conducted  by  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Charles  E.  Craven,  assisted  by  the  Rev.  Wil- 
liam H.  Lloyd  of  the  Southold  Presbyterian 
Church,  the  Rev.  John  G.  Hehr  of  the  Presby- 
tery of  Brooklyn-Nassau,  the  Rev.  C.  C.  Corn- 
well  of  the  Riverhead  Congregational  Church, 
and  the  Rev.  Abram  Conklin  of  the  Southold 
LTniversalist  Church.  The  choir  sang  the 
hymn,  "For  All  Thy  Saints  Who  from  Their 
Labors  Rest."  Dr.  Craven  and  Mr.  Lloyd 
represented  the  Presbytery  of  Long  Island, 
Mr.  Hehr  spoke  for  the  Presbytery  of  Brook- 
lyn-Nassau, which  ordained  Mr.  Overton,  and 
Mr.   Cornwell   for  the  Ministerial  Association 


DANIEL    HAWKINS    OVERTON  61 

of  which  Mr.  Overton  was  a  beloved  mem- 
ber. Mr.  Conklin  offered  a  prayer  that  led 
every  heart  to  the  throne  of  grace  to  find 
grace  to  help  in  time  of  need. 

The  burial  was  in  the  Southold  Cemetery, 
beside  his  father  and  mother.  The  Rev. 
Abram  Conklin  spoke  the  words  of  committal 
and  Dr.  Craven  offered  prayer.  The  clouds 
of  a  dark  day  opened  for  a  little  and  the  sun- 
light broke  upon  the  mourners  gathered  at 
the  grave. 

The  bearers  were  Ellis  G.  Reeve,  Malcolm 
M.  Reeve,  Harry  I.  Aldrich,  J.  Trowbridge 
Kirkup,  Elwood  S.  Reeve  and  Terry  W. 
Tuthill,  the  first  five  of  whom  were  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Pastor's  Cabinet.  May  grace  and 
strength  be  given  these  young  men  who  bore 
the  body  of  their  brave  young  leader  to  the 
grave,  to  bear,  so  far  as  they  can,  the  burden 
that  he  laid  down  at  the  Master's  call. 


